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Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Here it is the FINAL UnBoxing match. My subscriptions with BB5 and Ipsy have come to an end and I don't expect to ever resubscribe. There are just better subscriptions out there and I have more than enough beauty products to last a few lifetimes.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with these services, Ipsy and Birchbox are two custom beauty subscription boxes that come monthly. Both of these cost $10 a month and each arrive with 4-6 different goodies ranging from sad little foil packets to full size products! Beauty Box 5 costs a little more at $12 and delivers the same amount of goodies. I would say that typically Birchbox consistently delivers high-end skincare and hair care products with a sprinkling of makeup while Ipsy goes more for the mid-range items and is normally a lot of makeup items and Beauty Box 5 is mostly drugstore with an even mix of products.

Ipsy

Initial Reaction: Good riddance is all I have to say! I hate how cheap the makeup bags feel now and the serious lack of creativity.1. $4.99 City Color Cosmetics Creamy Lip Stain in Flirtini is a full sized product. I love this brand however this pink is much too shocking for me. Good thing it found a loving home fairly quickly.2. $25 Emite Make Up Professional Eye Lash Curler is a full sized product. This is the cheapest curler I've ever felt, so that $25 price tag surprises me. I'll take my $3 elf curler any day!3. $3 Eva NYC Up All Night Volumizing Spray is a sample sized product. ENOUGH WITH THE HAIR PRODUCTS. The end.4. $0.80 Mitchell and Peach Fine Radiance Face Oil is a sample sized product. I've been loving face oils so I welcome this sample.5. $22 ModelCo BLUSH Cheek Powder in Cosmopolitan is a full sized product. This blush is really pretty. However ModelCo isn't very pigmented so I'm not expecting to love this.Approximate Value: $55.79

Birchbox

Initial Reaction: I opted not to pick a sample this month and I'm quite pleased with what I got!1. $2.66 Paula's Choice Clinical KP Treatment Cloths is a sample size. These are little treatment cloths that work to exfoliate and treat bumps anywhere on your face or body! A little TMI moment but recently I've started experiencing some acne on my shoulders and sometimes chest so I'm interested to see how these work out.2. $3.25 Harvey Prince Ageless – Pink Grapefruit is a sample size. If you've caught one of my previous Wednesday Wants this perfume was actually on my wishlist! I'm excited to have a sample now to see how it works with my body chemistry before I splurge on the full size. This definitely made the box for me and I don't think you will ever see me get this excited over a perfume sample again.3. $4 theBalm® cosmetics Read My Lips™ Lip Gloss in BAM! Rose Pink is a sample size. I LOVE theBalm. I own pretty much every single one of their blushes so I'm excited at the chance to try out this lip gloss! My other experiences with lip(ish) products of stainiac and a lipstick didn't go so well but this gloss seems creamy and lovely so I'm looking forward to it.4. $17 Laura Geller Beauty GlamLASH Dramatic Volumizing Mascara in black is a sample size. Now that I've cleared out my mascara hoard, I'm a lot less cranky when I get them in the mail.5. $7.50 Davines MINU Shampoo is a sample size. Shampoo I can live with. I wish it came with conditioner so I could really see how it works, but c'est la vie.6. $1 Davines MINU Hair Serum is a sample size. Anything that I put into my hair and don't wash out is not received well. My hair likes to be clean and except for dry shampoo I never leave product in my hair. Thankfully this is a small foil packet so this will be passed on.Approximate Value: $35.41

Beauty Box 5

Initial Reaction: What a horrible box. I'm so happy my subscription is over.1. $22.50 Marsk Mineral Eyeshadow in Vanilla Frosting is a full sized product. There's no way this tiny thing is this expensive! The color is really pretty though, pure white with iridescent sparkles throughout.2. $3.99 Revlon Colorstay Nail Enamel in Spanish Moss is a full sized product. Ugh this color is so ugly and I'm not a fan of this brand at all.3. $5 Absolute New York Lip Balm in Strawberry is a full sized product. This smells quite medicinal and I've heard that it's a pretty bad lip balm. I don't think I will ever use this.4. $6.60 GlamGlow Youthmud Tinglexfoliate Treatment is a sample size. This sample packet is ridiculously expensive only because I priced it from a full sized product. In reality it's probably worth about a dollar. I've used this before and quite enjoyed it even though it wasn't enough to justify the price. This is probably the only item I am happy to receive.5. $3.49 Avon Big Color Eye Pencil in Natural Vibe is a full sized product. Oh great another nude chubby stick. I'm not overly excited but at the same time it was an okay item to receive.Approximate Value: $41.58

I must say Birchbox is the winner and clearly why it's the only one that will survive this month! While the hair products were a slight miss I am ecstatic for the perfume and lip gloss and intrigued by the treatment cloths. BB5 seriously had the saddest offerings I've ever seen this month and I only like the mineral eyeshadow. Ipsy I just won't even comment on....What did you get this month in your subscription services?**Post contains affiliate links**

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lovelifeoutloud

Just a 20 something California girl with a crazy love for makeup and lofty aspirations for writing. Follow me as I break the (grammatical) rules and give my honest opinion on all things beauty and life.